The Inspection
by Sketty24
Summary: The mutant rumours surrounding Xavier's School summons the attention of the U.S Government. Under the façade of an educational assessment, an enthusiastic novice inspector is to spend the next fortnight evaluating the school. The truth must not be leaked.
1. Absolute Hell

**THE INSPECTION**

**Chapter One**

"Now, this'd better be good," muttered Logan as he sank down upon one of the plush cream couches in Professor Charles Xavier's office. The X-Men had been urgently summoned from their evening activities, of which for Logan had been sitting down to enjoy a nice cold beer. Currently apart from his beverage, Logan was far from impressed as he seated to join the rest of the team who had assembled at Charles's telepathic beckon.

The man himself was situated behind his polished oak desk, surveying the X-Men with benign eyes over the top of his poised, steepled fingers. A lavish desk lamp cast an atmospheric glow over that end of the office, of which was backed by tall windows that looked out upon the dark grounds of the mansion. "Thank you for responding so efficiently," the Professor told the room at large, deciding to politely ignore Logan's eye roll to the ceiling. "You may wonder why I've called you here so late."

"Admittedly, I was concerned there was an emergency Professor," said Scott Summers as he watched the elder man from his standing position besides the desk.

"No such emergency," Charles reassured with a small nod of his head towards the team leader. "However, the situation at hand is of extreme importance." The mutants gathered before him shifted uncomfortably, but all were awaiting further explanation. Even Logan had stopped studying the nearby ornament to lock his eyes upon Charles curiously. Satisfied his words had fully grasped the X-Men's attention, the Professor proceeded to elucidate the issue. "It seems the not so far-fetched rumours of our school housing mutants has attracted the unwanted attention of the USDE."

"Oosdee?" questioned Logan unhelpfully as he neglected to listen to Xavier's abbreviation.

There was a disdainful snort from Scott. "U.S.D.E," he said stiffly, spelling each letter out slowly as though it may help Logan understand. "United States Department of Education."

"So why isn't it USDOE - ?"

"How much attention has it garnered, Professor?" Storm quickly asked, overriding Logan's contemplation.

Charles slowly looked upon the white-haired mutant, pursing his lips slowly as he considered his answer. "Enough for them to want to arrange a visit from one of its school inspectors."

"They want to carry out a report on us?" questioned Jean Grey, an eyebrow hoisted in apparent disbelief.

"I very much doubt they are concerned about our education standards," said Charles darkly. "It seems like a convenient and legal way for them to come and scope out what we really are. I couldn't refuse the inspection on the grounds of arousing further suspicion."

Storm frowned, placing her hands on her hips, "But they'll report back everything we do! They'll know we're all mutants!"

"So you see my concern," sighed Charles, nodding his head in a slow manner. "That information, once leaked to the superiors will soon have a catastrophic effect."

"You think it's a cover-up, then? Them sending an inspector for an education report, but instead they'll really be wanting to see if there's any truth to the mutant rumours?"

There was an affirming nod. "Exactly, Scott," the Professor replied. "Though I very much doubt the true nature of the visit would be revealed to the very individual who is carrying out the inspection. However, the telephone conversation today, though polite enough has already tried to unsettle us."

Logan tilted his head slowly, "How so?"

"The inspector is arriving tomorrow."

There was a collective response of disconcerted sounds and Charles raised a hand to quieten the hubbub. "We must not let this trouble us. The Government is trying to interfere at Westchester and we must pass this inspection without any evidence of us being a mutant boarding school. More importantly, without any evidence of the facilities we run in the lower levels," he nodded slowly as he referenced to the X-Men.

"So we gotta lie to them?" said Logan, cocking an eyebrow. "What the hell happened to you wantin' humans and mutants to coexist peacefully?"

"It would be foolish to leave ourselves open for attack should the smallest scrap of evidence fall into their hands and give them the go-ahead to raid our school. My students' safety will always come first and I am not about to gamble dangerously with their lives." Charles gazed around at his team with the subtle striking gleam in his eyes. "The inspector will be staying with us for two weeks, in which we must ensure that we respond as any normal school would. Classes will be run as usual and attended by our visitor. There will be no mention of mutants or X-Men during their stay. Our educational curriculum will be evaluated, our range of amenities assessed."

The X-Men exchanged glances slowly, aware that the next fortnight would not only have a huge impact on their day-to-day lives, but also that of their students. "I'm guessing this means absolutely no display of powers," sighed Storm quietly, glancing out to the dark skies forlornly.

"It would be far too risky," confirmed Charles as his eyes turned upon the African woman. "The inspector is arriving at midday tomorrow, the students will be briefed at breakfast about the changes for the next few weeks."

As the X-Men prepared to take their leave and stew over the meeting's revelations, Logan's quiet mutter summed up all of their apprehensive thoughts. "These next two weeks are gonna be absolute hell."

* * *

This is a little plot bunny that's been burrowing away for quite a while. It's a drama comedy I guess, for I intend for it to be quite light hearted, at least initially! This prologue is just to whet your appetite. Please drop a review and let me know what you think of the premise!


	2. It's The Principle

**Chapter Two**

"They're late," said Logan as he stood looking out of Xavier's office window, down onto the grounds at the front of the mansion. The nearby clock showed it to be 12.05. The X-Men had gathered in the Professor's office once more, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the inspector. Charles had informed the students in a morning assembly, and unsurprisingly, the news had not gone down well. But he had warned them that if the news got out that they were mutants, it could mean the end of Xavier's School for the Gifted. That had worked, and the students had left gossiping hurriedly over the revelation.

Scott came up besides Logan, looking outside. "It's been five minutes, give them chance."

"Maybe they're not coming," added Storm hopefully.

"Sorry, 'Ro," sighed Logan as he watched the large gates part and a car begin navigating up the gravelled driveway. Storm and Jean quickly moved to the window to watch the vehicle come closer to the mansion, pulling in besides the rise of steps to the entrance. There was an anxious silence as they watched a dark haired head appear out of the car, currently with their back to the window as they looked out appraisingly over the beautiful gardens at the front of the mansion. "I can see it now," Logan muttered as he watched the newcomer, "This person is gonna be real strict. Really demanding. Gonna be crackin' the whips at our heels."

"Sounds like a kinky fantasy of yours, Logan," said Scott dryly.

Just as Logan was about to retort, the inspector turned to look up at the mansion, positively beaming. A hand lifted to push thick-framed glasses up her nose, eyes peering up at the nearby architecture. She turned from the car, shutting the door in the process as she moved to the boot. Opening it, she began to pull out her battered suitcase, going bandy-legged as she heaved and grunted. She wobbled for a moment before she lowered the large suitcase onto the ground besides her. The X-Men were silently watching her as she lifted out a travel bag, of which she hadn't zipped up previously and her stationary tumbled out.

Notepads, pens, pencils and books were scattered over the gravel. She quickly crouched to gather up her fallen items, jamming them back in her bag as she proceeded to chunter under her breath. Standing, she quickly tucked her hair behind her ears, fingers propping her glasses back up. Logan slowly looked round at the X-Men, "And _that's_ what we're supposed to be scared of? She's harmless."

Continuing to fumble with her luggage, she edged towards the back car doors, pulling one open to access something on the back seat. Swinging out, the edge of the door collided with the motorbike Scott had parked nearby. Off balance, it tumbled over into the gravel with a crash, summoning the woman's proceeding panic to try and stand it back up, all the while juggling bags on her arms.

Scott made a strangled splutter, his eyes popping behind his ruby quartz lenses. "She's just - !" he uttered in a strained tone.

"The motorcycle is fine, be civil to her," warned Xavier, having since come to the window to watch the new inspector struggle to pull the bike back onto its stand.

"That's not the point!" argued Logan, who seemed to have been effected as badly as Scott. "It's a Harley Davidson. You don't knock a Harley Davidson over, it's the principle!"

Charles spoke over Logan's words. "Scott, would you be so kind as to help her carry in her luggage? Bring her to the office."

Scott made a noise caught between whine and a snort, and he turned, shoulders slumped as he stalked out to go and meet the woman who was now dragging her suitcase up the steps of the large entrance.

"He's a broken man," said Logan fondly, forgetting the motorcycle's suffering to instead focus on Cyclops'.

Travelling down the corridor, Scott skulked past the tall leaded windows, of which filtered in rays of dusty morning sunlight across the wooden floor. He was trying his best to reign in his emotions towards his beloved bike, and when he reached the door, opened it to smile painfully at the inspector. "Good morning."

He now had a clearer view of the woman, and his eyes took in the rather dowdy appearance of her attire, of which consisted of fashion suited to a woman twice her age. A white blouse with a ruffled neck was fasted high past her bosom, and a brown suit and skirt, slightly too big for her frumpy frame, hung awkwardly. Long locks of brown were pulled up in a tight bun, appearance finalised by the most garish earrings Scott had ever witnessed.

"Hey!" she replied enthusiastically. "I'm so sorry I was late, traffic was real bad coming from Chicago, which is where I'm from, by the way. I suppose you already know that being briefed about my arrival and all. This mansion is so gorgeous; I can't believe I'm staying here for two weeks. Are you Professor Xavier?"

Scott's face had slackened slightly at the animated babble that met him, and had half a mind to slam the door in her face. "No.." he said weakly, forcing the smile back on his face. "I'm Scott Summers," he extended his hand towards her, and she gave him an eager shake.

"Verity Knowles, though I suppose you already knew that too. So, what are you, a teacher here or something?"

"Yes.." he said quietly, wishing for the floor to open up beneath him. "Let me.. let me get those for you," he quickly added, desperate to keep things moving so she didn't focus on him too long. He moved to take her suitcase and various bags, and unlike Verity, lifted the heavy items with surprising ease. Without waiting for a response, he began walking away. "I'll take you to the Professor's office."

If he'd have thought he would be greeted by a polite silence, he was very much mistaken. Verity hurried along besides him, gazing around at the mansion's interior with awe. "So, how many students you got here?"

"About sixty," he replied, walking as quickly as possible.

"That's not a lot of a boarding school, is it? I also heard you don't have fees, is that true?"

Scott almost dropped the suitcase. "Yes, that's true," he responded, thinking quickly. "We accept students here based on the range of their academic abilities, not the size of their wallet."

Verity seemed impressed by this. "That's so rare, but an absolutely wonderful approach in my opinion. Mind you, I bet this mansion is worth a bit; I was looking at the grounds. I love the outdoors and you got a big beautiful garden out here. When was this mansion built?"

"Er," said Scott helplessly. "You'll have to ask the Professor that."

"Oh, sorry! Am I making you uncomfortable? I am, aren't I?"

Scott didn't look at her. "I'm fine."

"I like your sunglasses," Verity then complimented happily. "My brother has a pair like that, uses them for biking."

"Oh, that's nice," said Scott weakly, feeling sweat trickling from his brow. He lowered the suitcase and other various pieces of luggage outside the double doors to Xavier's office. "Professor Xavier is waiting for you."

"Ok, thank you!" she replied, turning to the door and allowing herself inside. She moved in slowly, looking over the faces that were gazing at her, assessing her as much as she was to them. "Hello," she said, making a nervous giggle before she quietened, shrinking back a little from the imposing stare she was getting from the nearby rugged-looking fellow.

Scott meandered in behind her, looking strained. Charles was the first to reply and easily the most composed. "Good morning. Please, come and take a seat."

Verity edged in, glancing at the people that stood around her. Everyone seemed to be older than her and she felt increasingly out of place. She seated herself down on the couch and Logan, who had been stood near it, stepped away as though she was contagious. He moved to skulk by the window, looking unhappy. "Good morning," she replied politely to Charles, fixating her attention on him. "I'm Verity Knowles, it's a pleasure to meet you," she leaned over to shake his hand in greeting.

The smile Charles spread for her instantly soothed her and she couldn't help but return it. "Did you have a good trip?"

"Yeah, the roads were a little busy, but I suppose they always are when you're trying to get into New York. Honestly, I am so honoured to be at this place. I've only done primary schools before, so this is a real step up for me. So many of our inspectors turned down the offer to come to your school, but I don't know why, this place is beautiful!"

Storm made a nervous cough into her hand.

"Well, I hope you continue you enjoy your stay here Miss Knowles," said Charles, smiling pleasantly. "As it's the weekend, please use today to familiarise yourself with the mansion and tomorrow we will see you bright and early for class."

Verity nodded, looking positively ecstatic. "I will do."

"I'll introduce you to our team of staff," said the Professor, turning to look over the X-Men. "You've already met Scott Summers." Scott nodded slowly, but stayed quiet. "This is Dr Jean Grey," he continued, indicating the tall redhead. Jean did the grace of waving politely to Verity. "And Ororo Munroe," Storm nodded slowly, smiling a little. "And last but not least, Logan." He did not elaborate on the lack of a surname for Logan. Logan just glowered from his position by the window, arms folded and his brow heavily furrowed.

Verity smiled at them all in turn, but her expression faltered on Logan.

"Now then, we ought to get you settled in. Logan, why don't you show Verity to her room?" Charles suggested with a hint of an amused smile twitching his lips.

With a look that could kill, Logan stomped from behind the window, throwing Charles a snarl over the head of the new arrival before he exited, followed quickly by an apprehensive Verity.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed it! Please review.


	3. The Tour

**Chapter Three**

Logan stalked down the corridor carrying Verity's luggage without any struggle. He took long, swift strides, turning corners sharply and ascending staircases speedily - all this leaving Verity hurrying along in his wake. Her enthusiastic conversation attempts hadn't worked very well on Logan, who had taken to ignoring her every question. It was only as he deposited her suitcase outside the door of her room did Verity place her hands on her hips and throw him a glare. "Would you like me to make a note of a certain staff member's hostile nature?"

The threat earned her a fierce glower, of which caused her to shrink backwards. "Well I'm sorry if I ain't talkative," growled Logan.

"Nothing wrong with a few manners," said Verity quietly to the floor, having lost her confidence to stand up to him with.

Logan remembered how much rode on this woman and her inspection, and despite it going against his nature, he managed to utter a quiet. "Sorry." He moved aside to open the bedroom door for her, not looking at her, as though it may cause him to give out a sharp retort. Verity seemed satisfied with the apology, and made her way into the room, which would be hers for the next two weeks.

This in itself gave off a great impression. Maybe they had given her one of the best rooms, or just maybe this was the normal standard at such a beautiful mansion. A lush emerald green carpet spread from the door's threshold, meeting the hem of cream wallpapered walls. A large double bed, quilted in a silken green spread sat near the window, of which was thrown open to let in the afternoon sunlight. Verity crossed the room slowly, unable to stop her fingertips sliding along the top of a spotless, rich oak dresser. She reached the window, gently pushing aside the fluttering netted curtains to peer down at the lush grounds.

Meanwhile, Logan was doing what he did best, keeping to himself. He tugged in her various items of luggage and left them besides her bed for her to unpack. Straightening, he watched her as she stood at the window. It reminded him of when he first came here. He too had been distinctly impressed by the mansion's overwhelming beauty, and how, at the same time, it didn't give off that imposing feel. On the contrary, this was a place anyone would comfortably call home and mean it.

"So, how long have you been here?" asked Verity, turning from the window. She decided it was time to start getting herself acquainted with the staff, and who better to start with than the one she felt she was going to least enjoy? Her mother had always told her to deal with the difficult problems first.

Logan looked discomfited by this enquiry. He generally didn't like being questioned. A hand lifted to scratch at his neck awkwardly, eyes looking elsewhere. "Er, about five months."

Spurred on by getting a non-aggressive answer, Verity moved over towards one of her cases, opening it and helping herself to a notepad and pen. Logan, who had been stood besides the luggage, automatically stepped away. Seating herself on the bed, Verity began taking notes.

Now Logan _did_ feel uncomfortable.

"And what do you teach here?"

Logan quickly thought over what he had done with the students. He didn't really have an official role here, probably because of his tendency to take off whenever he felt like it, though recently he had been sticking much closer to the mansion. "Er," he said again, "I work with the kids on more active stuff, y'know."

"Physical Education?" suggested Verity helpfully, not looking up from her notepad.

Logan tilted his head, "Yeah," he replied, with a little more confidence. It was better than saying Danger Room Sessions.

"So, do you teach daily?"

The confidence was quickly dashed. He really wished he had listened more carefully to the Professor on how the X-Men were supposed to respond to these questions. As simple as they may be, they were extremely hard to answer. "Look," he said, hardly believing what he was doing when he stepped forward and tugged the notepad and pen out of her hands. "You shouldn't be doing work on your first day here, should you?"

Verity peered upward slowly, lifting a hand to prop her glasses back up her nose. "I suppose you're right," she agreed quietly. "I just want to do a good job of this. It my first proper inspection, in a proper school."

It seemed they had both been thrown in at the deep end, Logan thought. "Well, you'll do a better job if you allow yourself to settle in." He was thinking fast. It was hard to try and plan ahead, Logan wasn't a thinker, he was a doer.

Verity stood to her feet at this point, nodding her head as she listened to him. "You're right," she said again. "I ought to familiarise myself with the mansion some more. Tell you what, why don't you give me a tour of the place?"

Logan could have made a running leap through the window. "What?" he said quickly, his expression slackening.

"A tour," repeated Verity, now smiling. "Otherwise I'm going to get_ so_ lost in this place! I'm hopeless with directions. Probably why I was late coming up here."

"Alright," agreed Logan quietly. At least he knew the ins and outs of the mansion rather well. He often took to exploring the school when he had nothing better to do. He deposited the notepad and pen on the dresser as he turned to exit; relieved he wasn't going to be questioned any longer.

* * *

"Logan's showing Verity around!" announced Scott in a rush of breath as he burst into Xavier's office. The X-Men there quickly looked up in surprise. Scott nodded impressively, as though he had just delivered the most juiciest gossip. "I just saw him now, showing her the downstairs recreation room."

Jean exchanged a stunned expression with Storm before she looked back towards Scott. "Logan's showing her around?" she repeated, finding this hard to believe.

"I know!" Scott replied, staring at her. "But, what the hell is he telling her?!"

"Professor?" Storm questioned softly as she looked round towards the headmaster.

Charles made a thoughtful noise as he adjusted his teacup in its saucer. "I'm sure he will be fine," he replied, ignoring Scott's snort of disbelief. "I'm glad he's stepping up to the role. Admittedly, I'm surprised Logan is the one making the effort."

"The effort?" asked Jean uncertainly.

"Well, yes," Charles said, looking around the team. "For as brave as you are on the battlefield, you three have spent the last two hours in my office, scared that you may come across Miss Knowles."

Scott shifted uncomfortably near the door. He didn't like being talked down to when it was Logan who was doing better than him. "I could have given her a tour," he mumbled.

"Then why didn't you?" asked Charles, the corners of his lips twitching in amusement. He lifted his teacup to take a sip of the hot contents.

"Don't worry, Professor," said Storm valiantly. "From now on, we will put in the effort, I promise you."

* * *

Making his way outside, Logan had only just stepped onto the patio when he saw a ball of fire go arching across the basketball court. "Oi!" he bellowed loudly, "Get inside, NOW!" The students there scattered like a group of terrified antelope, scurrying away to get inside as fast as their legs could carry them. Verity stepped round Logan to see what the fuss was, but was met with an empty basketball court in the distance.

"Well disciplined," she commented uneasily, peering up at Logan who was glaring angrily at where he had seen the display of powers.

Logan threw her a sharp look before he continued to stomp across the patio, descending the stone steps. "Damn right," he uttered, still seething. The idea that one student's mistake could have cost the X-Men everything they lived for had struck a very angry chord within him. He only knew of one fire-wielding student, and made sure he was going to get a few extra laps of the grounds the next time Logan had 'P.E.'

"So, who maintains the grounds?" asked Verity as they passed by a colourful flowerbed. A butterfly took off from one of the tulips and fluttered lazily across their path.

Logan decided it was easier to the honest to this question. "Sto – Ororo," he said, turning down the brick path and making his way towards the large glass extension that contained the swimming pool.

"All of it?" Verity seemed surprised.

"Yeah, she wouldn't have it any other way," muttered Logan as he kept walking.

Taking one last glance over the gardens before she stepped through into the conservatory containing the pool, she spoke, "I'll be sure to tell her what a fantastic job she does."

Logan made a grunt in response, but said little else. He made his way across the Olympic-sized swimming pool, ignoring Verity's impressed sounds. "Swimming pool," he commented without passing it a glance, giving her little time to take much else in as he strode through the double doors and back indoors to a corridor. He stopped, turning towards her so swiftly she almost walked into him. "Shown you everythin' now, ain't I?"

"I think so.." said Verity uncertainly, who honestly wasn't sure. All she knew was that she had seen a lot.

"I showed you the garage, didn't I?" Logan asked, continuing to walk once more. "And the kitchens?"

Verity nodded as she followed him. "Yes, you did."

"Can't think of much else then."

"What's on the lower level?" asked Verity as she passed a closed lift door, noticing the downward button.

Logan almost stopped walking again. "Just a basement," he said quickly. "And some of the Professor's private areas. We don't go down there."

The answer seemed to satisfy Verity, for she nodded her head in understanding, and picked up her pace after him. Up ahead, a group of students passed by chatting animatedly. Logan fixated them a threatening glare. Just as they were about to hurry away (no one liked to linger around Logan,) he called after them. "Hey, you lot. This is Verity Knowles. She's inspectin' the school over the next two weeks, alright?" He felt he needed to reinforce the news of the human's visit before another student decided to display their powers.

There was a chorused greeting towards Verity, a lot of the students looking uncomfortable and even fearful. Verity wasn't surprised, she remembered inspectors when she was at school, and they could be an imposing lot. She waved at them, smiling and trying her best to look less threatening. She didn't want to make enemies here.

Soon enough, the students shuffled off, now talking in low whispers about Verity. Logan watched them leave with beady eyes. "Don't be too hard on them, Logan," said Verity, watching Logan's displeased expression as he watched the students retreat.

"Whatever," he grunted, moving off.

Verity watched him walk ahead, exhaling a soft sigh to herself at the man's continuingly difficult behaviour. She only hoped he eased up on the attitude, for she really didn't want to have to put a black mark against his name in her report.

"Y'comin'?" Logan called when he noticed she hadn't yet followed him.

She blinked quickly at realising how far ahead he had got, and swiftly picked up her pace to hurry after him. Maybe he wasn't as bad as he seemed, after all.

* * *

This was supposed to be uploaded yesterday, but FanFiction net had a fart over the document manager. So here it is, a day later! Any reviews? XD


	4. A Good Night's Sleep

**Chapter Four**

It had been a good first day, Verity thought as she neatly unfolded one of her blouses out of the suitcase that lay open on her bed. She had been given a tour, got to know one of the more difficult teachers a little better and the day had been rounded off by an exemplary dinner with the rest of the staff. Admittedly there had been a surprising moment in which Verity pondered over why Westchester was having such a glorious sunny day when she was sure the news report had forecasted heavy showers. It had resulted in Ororo dropping her fork and Scott gagging on a piece of lettuce.

Nevertheless, the man's colour eventually returned to his face as he hurriedly explained his food had gone down the wrong hole. This had prompted Verity into a long recollection of how she almost choked on an omelette when she was younger, leaving her audience very uncomfortable.

But now, the skies outside were dark and sullen, bringing the promise of rain the weather report had displayed earlier that day. Hanging up her clothes in the wardrobe, Verity continued to unpack her luggage. She would make sure she would enjoy her stay here, despite it being a report. If she was happy, they would be happy. Whilst the hour was drawing late, Verity wasn't quite ready to go to bed yet. Putting her now empty suitcase down besides the wardrobe, she moved towards the desk near the window, opening her laptop and turning it on.

The welcoming jingle echoed loudly around the room, causing Verity to wince and cling onto the laptop in a desperate bid to quieten the sound. The last thing she wanted was to wake up neighbouring sleepers. Once the laptop had started up, she opened up a fresh document page, watching the blinking cursor. Her hands sat poised over the keyboard before she quickly typed in her heading.

'Educational Assessment 2015

Xavier's School for the Gifted  
Verity Knowles'

She nodded in a satisfied way, situating the cursor for her first paragraph. She considered over what she could write, pondering over her first day here and trying to get across her first impressions of the mansion. Just as she managed to write her first few words, she was brought out of her concentration by a distinct sound through the walls of her room. She straightened from the desk, frowning as she listened into the sleepy quietness that had settled over the vast mansion.

Verity quickly stood from her chair, turning and making her way to her bedroom door. Unlocking it, she peered out into the empty corridor, of which was only lit by a few sparse lamps. The sounds were clearer, and seemed to be coming from a room further down the corridor. Someone sounded rather distressed. If Verity knew better, she would shut her door and proceeded to mind her own business. But instead, she stepped over the threshold, locking her door behind her, and she then set off, following the sound.

She stopped before the door in which the sound was coming from and she cautiously placed her ear to the wood. The low voiced mutterings continued, occasionally punctuated by strained gasps. She quickly brought her ear away from the door. Whatever was going on in that room, it most certainly wasn't any of her business. There was a low thud of something hitting the floor, the resulting crash making it sound like an object had just got knocked off the bedside table. Verity literally shot backwards from the door. She needed to get back to her room and quickly! Just as she turned to go and hide her red face behind her locked door, another sound caught her ear. Amongst all those grunts and groans, she could hear words being spoken more clearly this time.

"_N-no.. No! A-argh!"_

Verity hesitated, glancing back at the door. She recognised the voice this time. She very cautiously tiptoed back to the door, timidly knocking on the wood. "Logan? Is everything alright?" Her only response was continued grunts, which sounded pained and distraught. "Logan!" she called a little more anxiously. Her hand darted towards the doorknob. Did she dare enter? There was another crash. It sounded like something else had hit the floor. Her fingers clenched about the cool doorknob and she wrenched the door open. Eyes met Logan whom lay sprawled on his back in the bed, covers dishevelled and halfway on the floor. An arm laid haphazardly over one of the bedside tables, the source of the crash a broken lamp on the floor. He didn't stir when she entered. "Logan!" she tried again, advancing forward and carefully stepping around the shards of the glass lamp.

As the rule went, it was not wise to wake someone from a nightmare. But this seemed to be more than a nightmare. Plus, he was causing damage to his room, and she noticed bloodstains on the bed but yet saw no apparent injuries. He must have cut himself when he hit the lamp.

"Logan!" she tried, all the louder, feeling panic beginning to overtake her.

His eyes flew open and her momentary relief was shattered as he let out an unearthly roar. He shot upward in bed, ragged pants shaking his chest. A distinct _'snikt' _had sounded about the room and it was only as Verity glanced down did she saw gleaming metal blades protruding from his knuckles. She let out a horrified scream, scrambling backwards and tripping over the lamp in the process. Logan whirled startled eyes upon her, quickly sheathing his claws as he saw her staring at him in terror from her sprawled position on the floor.

_No.. it was ruined. All of it. Everything Xavier had stood for._

As he sat staring at her, unable to move, he saw her eyes slowly dilate before her lids sunk over her frightened gaze. Falling still, her head slumped towards the floor, lifeless hands sliding off her torso and hitting the carpet.

* * *

When Verity next woke, she was in her bed. Her eyes slowly opened to see the sunlight ceiling as dawn slowly washed light over the grounds of the mansion. She must have stayed up very late, for she slept through the night without stirring once. She gave a yawn as she rubbed her eyes, sitting up and slipping her legs out of bed. Proceeding to hurriedly get ready for the day (which was a little delayed as she distractedly realised she had spent ten minutes trying to pull on her trousers back to front.)

Hurrying down to the kitchen twenty minutes later, she walked in to see the staff all eating breakfast, and all looked up as one to eye Verity warily. "Good morning," she said pleasantly as she entered the kitchen, moving to sit down with them. Scott cautiously offered her the toast holder, from which she selected a piece. "Thank you," she said, proceeding to slaver copious amounts of butter over the piece of bread.

"How was your first night here?" asked Jean politely, though all eyes were locked on Verity, including Logan, who was watching her over the top of the morning's newspaper. They all knew how Charles had had to quickly intervene in the dead of night to stop Verity fully recalling the events.

"Oh, very good, thank you," replied Verity, smiling. "The beds here are wonderful; never had such a wonderful night's sleep. Though, that being said, I did have quite a bizarre dream. It's a little fuzzy now, but I remember going out of my room and exploring and I came across a rather strange sight."

At this point, Logan unhelpfully gagged on his toast, and proceeded to thump his chest heavily as he wheezed. The X-Men seemed thankful for the distraction and clamoured around the choking Logan, offering aid. "I gotta.. I'm gonna.." Logan pointed vaguely at the doorway. He stood to his feet and exited so fast he almost broke into a run.

The event had broken Verity out of her musings about her 'dream' and she continued to eat her toast and watch the rainfall outside, seeming completely unperturbed.

* * *

That was a close one! She's barely been here a full 24 hours and the X-Men have almost slipped up several times! She got her first class next, let's see how that goes!


End file.
